The Bulwark

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Two Republicans, two very different responses to Charlie Kirk’s assassination. Spencer Cox called for unity and calm. Donald Trump doubled down on rage, declaring Democrats “sick” and elections “rigged.” Will Saletan shows why the difference matters. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here.

Bill Kristol is joined by Jay Nordlinger to discuss the legacy of human rights struggles, the dangers of demagoguery, and the role of leaders in times of crisis. They look at Putin’s Russia, Trump’s America, and why the future of liberal democracy depends on choices made by both presidents and citizens. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thebulwark.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, John Avlon and libertarian thinker Nick Gillespie dive into America’s rising tide of political violence, and how reckless rhetoric fuels it. They explore Trump’s authoritarian drift, from tariffs and National Guard deployments to state capitalism that looks more like Xi Jinping than Ronald Reagan. Can new coalitions of centrists and libertarians push back against MAGA’s illiberal turn and rebuild a politics rooted in freedom, pluralism, and principle? Watch, listen and leave a comment. The How to Fix It with John Avlon podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. Add this podcast to your player of choice, here. Ad-free editions are available exclusively for Bulwark+ members.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim and Cam are joined by Amanda Litman, co-founder and president of Run for Something, the groundbreaking organization helping young, diverse, first-time candidates run for local office. She explains what’s driving the surge of interest in running for office, why so many of these potential candidates are “furious at Democratic party leadership,” and what it really takes to succeed in 2025 politics. Go check out Run For Something You can find her new book When We’re In Charge here! Follow FYPod on TikTok @thefypod FYPod is available wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. Subscribe to our YouTube channel here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com The murder of Charlie Kirk was the culmination of Americans' long-brewing fear of political violence. First, political violence expert Rachel Kleinfeld joins Sarah to discuss the ramifications of Kirk's death on the American body politic, and then Sarah discusses voters' fears of political violence that we've heard through the years. Watch, listen, and leave a comment. The Focus Group podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. Click to find the show or add this podcast to your player of choice, here. Ad-free editions are available exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Upgrade now to listen without ads and to join the community in the comments.

Tim Miller spent a full hour on MSNBC with Nicolle Wallace and guests digging into America’s biggest challenges, from the latest school shootings and our broken gun culture to Trump’s authoritarian push to put tanks in U.S. cities. They also covered how Trump’s tariffs are driving inflation, the GOP’s redistricting power grabs, and why courts and communities must keep pushing back. A sharp, unflinching look at the threats to democracy, and where hope still lives. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. Honest news. Smart analysis. Good faith. The Bulwark is reader-supported. To receive the latest and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thebulwark.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim Miller is joined by former FBI agent and Lawfare fellow Micheal Feinberg to discuss Kash Patel’s rocky leadership of after Charlie Kirk’s assassination with confidence dwindling among MAGA loyalists, and how the FBI purges are affecting the success of FBI investigations. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. Honest news. Smart analysis. Good faith. The Bulwark is reader-supported. To receive the latest and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Trump and the people around him want to use the Kirk assassination to suppress their political opposition. And Trump is clearly laying the groundwork for cracking down on people he doesn't like—peaceful protesters, Dem fundraisers—while also offering rhetorical comfort to potential vigilantes on the right. Meanwhile, we are witnessing the danger of having an incompetent person atop the FBI, who alternates his time between posting for clicks and purging the bureau of highly qualified personnel for political cred. Plus, Vance is running for the 2028 nomination every day, the raid on the Georgia Hyundai plant shows the incoherence and stupidity of Trump's economic vision, and as Putin tests the resilience of NATO, the White House is playing politics in Poland. David Frum joins Tim Miller for the weekend pod. show notes * Frum's "Trump Is No Nationalist" piece * Bill's tribute to Georgia police officer David Rose * Bob Kagan's "The Beginning of the End of Nato" Tim referenced * The poem, "For Whom the Bell Tolls" * Tim's playlist * Frum's podcast Bulwark Live in DC and NYC at TheBulwark.com/events. Tix on sale next week for a second Toronto show! As always: Watch, listen, hit the like button or leave a comment. We want to hear from you. Ad-free editions of The Bulwark Podcast are available exclusively for Bulwark+ members. The Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller is available wherever you get podcasts and on YouTube. New shows drop each weekday afternoon. If you like the show, leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐ wherever you listen. Add The Bulwark Podcast to your player of choice, here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sarah and JVL talk about the president’s response to Charlie Kirk’s murder and why it’s so dangerous. Then we go deep on how to react in moments of crisis: Can you be too nice? How do you balance truth and compassion? What is the impact of timing? And was JVL right to turn the comments off for the first 24 hours? Do us a solid, though: Don’t comment on this until you’ve listened to the episode. The Secret Podcast with JVL and Sarah is exclusively for members of Bulwark+. To watch or listen to future episodes and join the Secret community in the comments become a Bulwark+ member today.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com JVL, Sarah Longwell and Tim Miller react to Trump’s chaotic Fox & Friends rant about the Charlie Kirk murder. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. Honest news. Smart analysis. Good faith. The Bulwark is reader-supported. To receive the latest and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

On this week’s episode, I’m joined by Tony Gilroy to discuss his work on Andor, the hit Disney+ series that’s a prequel to Rogue One but has ambitions beyond telling the backstory of the Death Star. It is, in a very real way, a TV show about our moment and the mounting tension felt throughout the political order: from Imperial troops on the streets of civilian cities attempting to provoke conflict to Luthen Rael’s (Stellan Skarsgård) campaign of violent resistance, one can’t help but draw parallels to this increasingly fraught point in American history. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thebulwark.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sarah Longwell, Tim Miller, and Will Sommer went live to discuss the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s murder: the facts, the political fallout, the online right’s reaction, Kash Patel management of the investigation, and what it all means going forward.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Sam Stein and Will Sommer take on Charlie Kirk’s murder, the spectacle of Turning Point USA, Kirk’s role as a gatekeeper, his clashes with rivals like Nick Fuentes, and the legacy he leaves behind. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com This country has too many guns and too many crazy people. And the social media oligarchs are fanning the flames of violence by constantly trying to piss people off. The Kirk assassination highlights just how dangerous a moment we are living in. America is not free if people are too afraid to speak their minds. Plus, parenting and the surprising gap in what Gen Z women and men think are the highest priorities in life.Crooked Media's Erin Ryan joins Tim Miller. show notes * Tim's latest FYPod episode * JVL on Charlie Kirk * Andrew on the reaction to the assassination * Nancy Mace after the shooting * The Wired story on surrogacy As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Ad-free editions of The Bulwark Podcast are available exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left-hand side of the player to toggle to audio. The Bulwark Podcast is available wherever you get podcasts and on YouTube. Add the show to your player of choice, here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim Miller takes on a new lawsuit from former FBI officials citing Kash Patel and Dan Bongino politicizing the bureau and pushing out career agents in favor of loyalty and social media clout. Read more in the NYT, "White House Exerts Enormous Influence Over F.B.I., Lawsuit Says" As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. Honest news. Smart analysis. Good faith. The Bulwark is reader-supported. To receive the latest and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim Miller and Cameron Kasky share their immediate reactions to the assassination attempt on Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk in Utah. As a shooting survivor, Cameron explains why this event was particularly triggering, and why it must be recognized for what it is: a school shooting. They also examine the political fallout. Will the right turn Charlie Kirk into a martyr? Why does Turning Point USA resonate with young people? And how will this event shape the already escalating wave of political violence? Follow FYPod on TikTok @thefypod FYPod is available wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. Subscribe to our YouTube channel here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Rep. Brendan Boyle joins Sam Stein to explain why Republicans want a shutdown and how their healthcare cuts could throw 15 million Americans off insurance. They dig into Trump’s role, the chaos in Congress, and Boyle’s push to protect constitutional spending powers. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com Tim, Sarah and JVL are back! Trump shrugs at Russian drones, clings to a laughable “hoax” defense on Epstein, and gets played by Netanyahu yet again — while Kamala Harris calls Biden’s 2024 run reckless. Watch, listen, and leave a comment. This ad-free video version of The Next Level is exclusively for Bulwark+ members. You can find The Next Level wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube. Add The Next Level to your podcast player of choice, here. The gang will be together for two live shows in October: * October 8 - Live in D.C. — On sale now. * October 11 - Live in New York - Bulwark+ members will get first dibs on tickets via a members-only presale on Friday, Sept 5. Want early access to tickets? Join now! To learn more and grab your tickets, go to TheBulwark.com/events.

Tim Miller and Sarah Longwell react to the shooting of conservative commentator and activist Charlie Kirk. As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Bulwark+ Takes is home to short videos, livestreams, and event archives exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left side of the player to toggle to audio. Add Bulwark+ Takes feed to your player of choice, here. Honest news. Smart analysis. Good faith. The Bulwark is reader-supported. To receive the latest and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thebulwark.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thebulwark.com If Zohran Mamdani, as NYC mayor-elect, held a dinner with finance bros and threatened them with a huge wealth tax if they didn't sweet-talk him and say how much they agreed with his political vision, the Wall Street community would freak out. Yet, this version of a shakedown is *really* happening at the White House all the time and in response, the country's most powerful and wealthy business leaders can only trip over each other as they jostle for the chance to cut up Trump's well-done steak. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is tripping over its own rulings to green-light ICE's racial profiling in Southern California.Stephanie Ruhle and MALDEF's Tom Saenz join Tim Miller. show notes * Maggie Haberman pursuing the White House's 'hoax' theory on Epstein * Job Garcia's video of his arrest—includes non-visuals when his phone was in his back pocket * Bulwark Live in DC and NYC at TheBulwark.com/events. Toronto is SOLD OUT As always: Watch, listen, and leave a comment. Ad-free editions of The Bulwark Podcast are available exclusively for Bulwark+ members. Don’t care for video? Use the controls on the left-hand side of the player to toggle to audio. The Bulwark Podcast is available wherever you get podcasts and on YouTube. Add the show to your player of choice, here.